The Panthers agreed to terms with young goalies Tyler Plante and Marc Cheverie to one-year, two-way deals Wednesday.

The Panthers goalie tandem of veterans Jose Theodore and Scott Clemmensen are set for this season, so both Plante and Cheverie are expected to play in the ECHL or AHL this season. Jacob Markstrom will most likely compete with Theodore for the starting job in the 2012-13 season, but the lanky Swede is slated for San Antonio of the AHL this season, unless he absolutely sparkles in training camp.

Cheverie, 24, played in 30 games with Cincinnati (ECHL) last season going 13-9-5 with three shutouts. He also played in 15 games with Rochester (AHL) going 2-7-1. He was drafted by Florida in the seventh round (193rd overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Plante, 24, played in 35 games for Rochester last season going 13-17-2 with a .909 save percentage. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound goalie was drafted by Florida in the second round (32nd overall) in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft.

Comments (28 Comments)

Goaltending is one area where Florida fans are in for a rude awakening. They have gotten so used to Luongo and Vokoun, they don’t remember what it is like to have subpar goaltending that often cannot make the big saves. Sure Vokoun and Luongo let in stinkers down here and had bad night every now and then (every goalie does). But it will be interesting to see how Florida’s goaltending will hold-up when the offensive onslaughts begin. This is one position where Florida took a slight step backward in my opinion. I know the rahrahs and apologists won’t agree with me, but they never do. To them, Tallon is already god and can do no wrong.

Let the goals pour in, for all I care. I have always said on this board that I would rather lose games 6-5, 5-4, even 4-3…just as long as we can put the biscuit in the basket. With a more offensive (no pun intended) mindset and some pretty decent scorers, we should stay in most games. Besides, I think one more lottery pick will cement us for an additional 3-5 years. My opinion.

Also, is anyone else excited about Grimaldi? The NHL- better than any other league IMO – is where tenacity, hard-work and small size can come together and flourish amazingly (Theo Fleury, Russ Courtnall, Marty St. Louis, I really could go on and on).

I agree, at least for this year, and maybe next, we may be in for a rude awakening when it comes to goaltending. Unfortunately, Vokoun made his bed, and (at least from the reports) wanted to test free agency first. I think Tallon did the best he could with what was available. I’m definitely not confident in the goaltending this year unless Markstrom really shines in camp and proves he is the goalie everybody says he should be. I haven’t seen it yet.

Ever since Gord Murphy took over the defensemen the defense has much improved. If they can keep the shots from the perimeter, then Theodore should be okay for the most part. Goaltending is the one position that is questionable. The year before last Theodore did pretty well in Washington and they were not known for their defense. It will make for an interesting year. Also while everyone touts, Markstrom as goalie of the future, when he got injured last year, Plante came in and played excellent. Plante may turn out to be the sturdier and better of the two.

People also forget that Clem stepped in a few years back when Brodeur got hurt and played amazingly with a defense very similar to this one; puck movers, goal scorers, and stay at home trucks. We have two goalies here that WANT to play some hockey.. unlike Roberto and Vokoun who felt like they HAD to play. Theodore is a vezina winning MVP goaltender who performs very well under pressure. If things get too hot we have a great backup to put in and some of the best goaltending prospects in the NHL.

An article from last month talking about the Red Wings signing goaltender Joey Macdonald. He will start in Grand Rapids. This situation is pretty darn similar to the one reported here.. and I’m almost positive Detroit is a hockey market. I expect you to try to spin this any which way.. and chalk up lines that include “Yackmark” or the “Panther Patrol”. By all means.. and don’t try to split any hairs with this, you lose.

I think given Markstrom’s injury, if we need to call up a goaltender during the first half of the season it will be Plante. The same can be said for Detroit.. should they need a goalie, they’ll call up Macdonald. You see how the situations are similar? At this point, neither are “slated” to play this season, but both could end up doing so. And as for Hank who asked about Shawn Mattias.. here is an article written about him just a few days ago:

It’s a good read and confirms what I’ve been saying about him which is there is no room for him at center and he will either play wing or won’t play.. as of now he hasn’t accepted his RFA offer. That’s my two cents for the evening.

Points here are all valid about goaltending. It’s a bit of a gamble to risk not putting big $$$ into goaltending, but I think it’s the way to go. You take your chances that the improved line-up can make for more exciting, upbeat hockey, and hope you can get at least 75-80% of what we would’ve had to pay a Byrzgalov-type goalie..

As the season goes on, you evaluate the team and how much a difference it’s having on your team. If it’s not working, there’s always options. It may not be fair, but it seems the goalie position has been over-saturated lately. So a low-budget team like the Panthers takes their chances, then tries to find the best guy at the lowest price… It doesn’t work every year, but it’s pretty much how Beinfest has had success with the Marlins…

Much to do and post about absoloutely nothing at all.
Results are all we will want to see, and not the usual fast start garbage keeping us in 7th and 8th place, only to fold like a BAC pancake when the rest of the NHL is peaking..
The Panthers must start out good and in the top 8, tehn peak after February,like the good teams know how to do, otherwise this is just the same old Pre season hype, with no reason other than hope and dreams of well intentioned Panther fans looking for a straw to grasp..

I agree with Puckbubba, don’t count Plante out so easily nor should you count Chevarie (?) out. I’ve watched DU games on tv and he’s a very good goalie. And for you novices DU stands for Denver University.

The fun part about being a fan is having a forum to voice our opinions. i say, let’s wait and see what happens. you don’t make it to the NHL being mediocre. Both JT & Clemmer are proven goalies and I thought Clemmer played some good games when Voukoun stunk up the joint. If the offense can score and the D can keep the shots down and clear the puck, we will stay in every game. I can’t count how many goals were scored on us after our goalies made the initial save. It’s gonna be fun to watch how this team comes together. Winning will envigorate this franchise and each goalie will want to be the #1 guy.

As far as Rocco, he’s gonna be the surprise rookie this year, He looked great the the development camp and I’m predicting him to be the next Mart St Louis.

I do not think so, he does have promise. I think that in the right setting he can be a pretty good player. I think that the organization is going to treat him carefully over the next season. He could have been mis-coached last season, or maybe not.

#1optimisticfloridapantherfan
I have told you many times..Do not post to me, you are inferior and a functional illiterate..
Post all you want, we all laugh at you, as you are quite the fool.
However Village Idiot, if you choose to spam this site with personal attacks, I will respond in kind.. I suggest that you shut up and post your moronic posts about the Panthers and stay away from educated, informed other posters..
Your call moron, my response..Spam the site if you need to, but be prepared..

Let’s stick to the topics and leave out the personal back & forth bickering. It’s a waste of time to read your BS comments. Let’s be men not boys.. I want to talk hockey OK? That being said, I’ve once again reviewed the roster of players & prospects and if I were the coaching staff, I’m going to have tough time deciding who makes the big club. Does anybody agree with me that we need to have at least 2 maybe 3 prospects (rookies) on the big club? Other than Erik G, Rocco & JHubby, who would you list as possibles to make the big club. Please feel free to evaluate each prospect and tell me why you think they should be playing on the team this year. I understand the need to develop & not rush players but does anybody agree with me that at least 2 maybe 3 prospects should be playing in the NHL this year?
Also, I didn’t see Sergie Samsonov on the roster. Did they release him?
OK Guys, I’m anxious to hear you weigh in with your thoughts.

With all due respect I remember 96, they still have a lot to do before they will have a solid system in place. They cannot repeat the mistakes of the past by bringing up kids before they are ready. We still have to bite the bullet for at least another year.

Last year we were putting out an AHL team with a coach who quit in January (Good luck NJ), and had a really crappy AHL minor league team.

Sergei Samsonov is an unrestricted free agents and so far the Panthers haven’t shown much interest in re-signing, although I thought he played really well after he came over in trade deadline deal. Excellent playmaker but over his career he has had too many of those, ‘invisible,’ type stretches. I’m guessing the next move is to re-up RFA Shawn Matthias. ‘Danger’ still has huge upside and is a great locker room guy.

BTW, I apologize to the ladies out there who are posting. I meant no disrespect! I love nothing better than a lady who knows her hockey. Did anybody see “She’s out of my league”? Alice Eve, now that’s a girl I’d love to take to a Panthers game LOL

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About the author

HARVEY FIALKOV, a tennis-playing sportswriter who grew up in Long Island following the dynastic Islanders, is the new Panthers beat writer for the Sun Sentinel and looking forward to writing about the best professional sports team in Broward County.